If you use a chainsaw to build a house, then maybe you have no idea what tools are best for a particular project.
We do. We use lawyer oriented services like Westlaw and Lexis. But these services are not cheap. However, they offer services far beyond what you get on the internet for free. They ensure the primary law they have (statutes, regulations, case law, etc) are very current, they do the cite checking, and they provide access to many secondary sources, treatises, etc. For many pro se litigants doing just one case and only occasionally needing research and printing of statutes, regulations, and case law the cost of these services proves to be just too much as they don't need everything these services offer. I also maintain a library of actual books for the law I use the most, and I simply photocopy the law from those should I have a need to provide it to the court as the layout of the printed books is superior to pretty much anything else. If you are near a law library you may be able to access a service like Westlaw at a cheaper cost or at least copy the law you need from the hardbound books to get the better layout you need. But because we use these dedicated online legal services and printed books we do not need some kind of specialized tool to convert the layout of free online resources like the state codes that states make available online for free.
That too, but since the tools I mentioned do a pretty good job of formatting the law should I need to print it out I haven't had a need to have my paralegal spend time on that task.
Your basic premise is flawed.
And that specifically is where the flaw is.
The law is not inaccessible to the public. For starters, there are public law libraries in each state and have been for decades. Yes, it may take more time and effort to go there than having it readily accessible by computer and the format may be books rather than electronic, but it is there. Any good law library will have subscription services that keep their books pretty current. Remember, just 30 years ago the books were the primary way to get most law even for many lawyers, and unless a law firm had its own well developed library for the lawyers to use they too had to resort to heading down to the law library.
Right. While much of the primary law is available to the public for free, many in the public are not skilled legal researchers. It takes training and extensive experience to do it well. Lawyers do it for a living and have the time and incentive to learn to do it well. Moreover, lawyers are trained and experienced in other skills that are important to advising and representing clients. While I see some members of the public thinking that what lawyers do is something anyone can do if they just have access to the law and spend some time, that comes from a superficial view of what lawyers provide.
The legislature has all the statutes on line. You are thick and in over your head. The access to the law is NOT conditioned on the consent of a private party. It is in the public to be accessed.
Quite true. My comments were more of a general sort and not about litigating in small claims court specifically. The relaxed rules in many small claims courts and the more simple nature of most cases in small claims courts makes them easier for people to litigate these cases themselves. I don't know how many states actually bar attorney representation in small claims court but would not be surprised if it was indeed the majority of them. My state uses a rule that the plaintiff cannot have an attorney in small claims court unless the defendant decides to have one. Also, when an attorney represents himself in small claims in my state he must state that he is a lawyer in the pleadings and inform the court at the trial of that too so the court is aware of the potentially uneven playing field faced by the other party.